Atlanta Finds Its Game but Not a Goal in D.C.

Starting Lineup

Atlanta United traveled to Audi Field on Saturday with the weight of its performance against Orlando. The first 10 minutes of that match had offered a glimpse of what the rebuilt team could become. The final 80 showed how far it still had to go.

Atlanta needed a better performance against D.C. United. More than a good performance though, it needed three points to keep its playoff hopes within reach.

Tata Martino made two changes to his starting lineup. Cooper Sanchez returned after clearing concussion protocol, and Enea Mihaj replaced Paulo Díaz in central defense. Jay Fortune started for the second consecutive match as he continued working his way back from injury. Steven Alzate remained out with an illness. Giuliano Galoppo was still unavailable while completing his visa process.

Atlanta had controlled most of the play, kept D.C. from putting a shot on target, and created enough opportunities to win comfortably. But the game ended 0-0. An improved performance had become another reason for frustration.

1st Half

Atlanta gave the ball away three times during the opening eight minutes and rarely reached Embolo with a forward pass. Atlanta gave the ball away again. D.C. read the pass and moved it left to Ordaz. He cut back and tried to turn Jacob, but could not bend his shot enough to get it on target. Another Atlanta turnover followed. Jacob appeared to use both hands as Munteanu went to the ground inside the penalty area. His arms looked high, but Badawi did not call a penalty. Atlanta was fortunate to escape without one.

Miranchuk then sent a long ball into the penalty area. Báez escaped his mark and crossed towards the middle. Embolo was falling backwards when the ball reached him, but he managed to get an attempt away. It went over after deflecting off two D.C. players, giving Atlanta a corner.

Alonso sent a long ball up the pitch to Almirón, who moved it to Fortune. Fortune played a lovely ball towards Jacob on the right. Atlanta kept the move going until the ball returned to Jacob outside the penalty area. Almirón and Embolo were both waiting inside the box. Jacob chose to shoot from distance and sent the ball over the crossbar.

Alonso sent a beautiful ball into the box that carried all the way to the six-yard area. Almirón arrived and tried to strike it first time over his shoulder, but he could not get a toe to it. He really should have made contact after Alonso had placed the ball that well.

Nono moved down the right and played a hard pass to Ordaz, who drove the ball across the six-yard area. A D.C. player was waiting at the back post for what would have been an easy finish, but Mihaj made an excellent block. The resulting corner reached another D.C. player near the six-yard box, and he redirected it towards the near post. Fortune was positioned on the post and knocked it behind for another corner. Atlanta was lucky to get through both chances.

D.C. then pressed Hoyos and forced him to take a quick goal kick. Hoyos sent it directly to a D.C. player, but the player who had pressured him was called off. The flag bailed Hoyos out of a dangerous mistake.

Atlanta continued sending players towards the left to support Báez. Alonso leaned towards that side, while Báez and Almirón took turns pushing forward. When one dropped back to help, the other became Atlanta’s outlet up the wing.

Alonso sent another long ball over the top and found Almirón inside the penalty box. Almirón spun and struck the ball, although it was difficult to tell whether he intended a shot or a cross. Either way, it went out with no Atlanta player close enough to reach it. Atlanta needed another runner inside the box, but Embolo had again dropped into midfield to find the ball. D.C. surrounded him with as many as three defenders whenever he remained high, and Atlanta was attacking without its striker near goal.

Báez was knocked to the ground inside D.C.’s penalty area late in the half. The contact initially looked soft, but Hoyos ran forward and sprayed water across Báez’s face and mouth, apparently trying to wash away blood. Badawi called for the medical staff, and Báez was checked for a concussion. He briefly left the pitch before returning.

Báez delivered two more dangerous crosses before halftime. The second reached Almirón, who tried to get the ball on to Embolo. Several D.C. defenders swarmed Embolo before he could control it.

Atlanta produced another promising combination during stoppage. Báez played the ball to Almirón, who waited for runners after his first attempt was blocked. He passed back to Amaro, and the ball continued to Miranchuk. Miranchuk turned and tried an outside-of-the-foot shot with his left, but sent it wide of the right post.

Atlanta had all ther chances and good passing. And still went into halftime with the match scoreless.

2nd Half

Atlanta moved the ball faster from the start of the second half. A long pass found Miranchuk, and Atlanta worked the ball through Almirón, Fortune, Amaro, Miranchuk again, and Sanchez. The combination looked good until Sanchez’s shot was blocked at the edge of the penalty area. Atlanta recovered the ball and reset.

D.C. sent a long ball over the top to Baribo. He crossed into the penalty area, but overhit it too far from the runner. Nono tried to collect it, but Mihaj moved perfectly to guide it out of play.

Jacob then ran up the right and tried to send the ball towards goal. Bartlett went to ground with a well-timed slide and blocked what could have been either a shot or a cross. Almirón took the resulting corner and got cheeky, trying an Olimpico. The ball curled towards goal and ricocheted off the post.

Miranchuk ran through the middle and passed to Embolo, who was knocked to the ground as he received it. Embolo still managed to return the ball to Miranchuk. Alexey continued towards the top of the penalty area and found Sanchez, who tried to chip Johnson. The ball took a deflection and went just wide for a corner.

Martino made three changes in the 57th minute, sending on Gill, Edwards, and Muyumba for Amaro, Alonso, and Fortune. Alonso’s departure moved Jacob into central defense and put Edwards on the right. Gill played deepest in the midfield, with Miranchuk and Muyumba ahead of him.

Muyumba fought for a ball and toe-poked it to Almirón. Miggy and Embolo took off together, racing at three D.C. defenders. Embolo surged past him on the left, and Miggy pushed the ball ahead into his path. Embolo entered the box and hit it with his left foot, but Johnson threw out a leg and kept it out.

Gill collected the ball near Atlanta’s penalty area, carried it through the middle, and turned right to find Edwards. Edwards took off from inside Atlanta’s half and carried the ball all the way to the edge of D.C.’s 18. He sent it across, and Embolo used an awkward hop to dummy the ball for Miggy. Miggy had a clear shot from inside the box but pulled it horribly wide. He should have at least put it on target.

Gill took a crack at goal that was blocked. It started a D.C. counter. Gill turned and chased the runner from the edge of D.C.’s 18 all the way back to Atlanta’s box. Gill stayed with him without making contact and prevented him from playing the ball across. The attacker turned towards the center, where Mihaj rushed forward and stripped the ball away. D.C. brought Mihaj down as he took it.

Picault replaced Miggy in the 74th minute. Embolo fought to keep the ball near D.C.’s box then had a cross blocked. He recovered, worked his way around the defender, and opened enough space to shoot with his left. Instead, Embolo tried to force a pass through three D.C. players. Muyumba and Picault were both behind them, and the ball had no chance of reaching either player. Embolo should have taken the shot.

Picault later used two stepovers to reach the left corner and sent the ball into the penalty area. No Atlanta player was there. Picault turned and questioned Embolo, who had started his run too late. Embolo raised his hand and apologized.

The resulting corner pinballed between several players inside the box. Embolo ran back from the post and threw himself into a close-range bicycle kick. The ball crashed off the post, but the flag had already gone up against him.

Luke Brennan replaced Sanchez in the 87th minute as Atlanta added another attacker for its final push. Gill danced through three D.C. players and sent a beautiful long pass forward to Brennan.

Atlanta kept moving the ball from Báez on the left to Edwards on the right. Miranchuk tried to find Brennan through the middle with a high pass. Miranchuk’s pass was too high, but Brennan managed to reach it and send the ball towards goal. It went out for an Atlanta corner. It would have been an improbably goal.

Kijima broke forward for D.C. during the third minute of stoppage time. Gill met him at midfield and cleanly stripped the ball away. It was a beautiful defensive play. Atlanta went forward again, and Gill carried the ball into the penalty area. The ball bounced quickly between players before popping into the air near the six-yard box. Brennan rose and drove his header against the crossbar. He was inches away from winning the match with Atlanta’s final chance.

Closing Thoughts

I liked what I saw from Atlanta for most of the night. After working through D.C.’s early pressure, the team passed the ball well, moved it quickly from side to side, and continued putting players into attacking positions. Atlanta played with confidence and kept searching for a winner until Brennan’s final header struck the crossbar.

It was one of Atlanta’s better performances this season. It still did not produce a goal.

Atlanta finished with 62 percent of the possession and completed 92 percent of its passes. It outshot D.C. 18-4, generated 2.7 Xg. Only three of Atlanta’s 18 attempts were on target.

D.C. was not an elite opponent, and the match became even more one-sided after Martino turned to his bench. Atlanta attacked faster, found another route forward on the right, and pushed D.C. closer to its own goal. The only change on the scoreboard was the time.

Martino saw the performance as the response he wanted after the loss to Orlando. The result still left him frustrated.

Atlanta needed to make up considerable ground to gain a place in the playoffs. Leaving Audi Field without a win made that possibility even less likely. When asked whether Atlanta had earned one point or lost two, Martino did not hesitate.

Atlanta’s individual performances are covered here.

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